The subject matter disclosed herein relates to controlling vehicles and in particular to compensating for a heading error of the vehicle when calculating lateral and longitudinal ground speeds.
Aircraft are typically controlled by controls that adjust a pitch, yaw and roll of the aircraft. A difference between the target heading, or the heading indicated by a pilot's control, and the actual yaw results in a heading error of the aircraft. Likewise, a difference between a lateral ground speed target and an actual ground speed results in a lateral ground speed error, and a difference between a longitudinal ground speed target and an actual ground speed results in a longitudinal ground speed error. Conventional systems correct the lateral ground speed error by adjusting the roll of the aircraft and correct the longitudinal ground speed error by adjusting the pitch of the aircraft. However, these systems may not take into account a relationship between the heading error and the actual lateral and longitudinal ground speeds. Over-compensation or under-compensation of lateral and longitudinal ground speeds may result.